The former president of Finland, Martti Ahtisaari, is dead. In 2008 he received the Nobel Peace Prize for his work to end international conflicts, for example in Kosovo and Northern Ireland.
Nobel Peace Prize winner and former President of Finland Martti Ahtisaari has died at the age of 86. This was announced by the foundation he founded. In 2021 it was announced that Ahtisaari was suffering from advanced Alzheimer’s disease.
He received the Nobel Prize in 2008 for his efforts as a mediator in international conflicts. In particular, Ahtisaari helped in the negotiations that led to the withdrawal of Serbian troops from Kosovo in the late 1990s.
Deployed in Namibia, Indonesia and Northern Ireland
Among his greatest achievements was his contribution to Namibia’s independence process in the 1980s and to the autonomy of the Indonesian province of Aceh in 2005, which formally ended a civil war that had lasted around 30 years. Ahtisaari was also involved in the peace process in Northern Ireland, particularly overseeing the disarmament of the terrorist group IRA.
Ahtisaari was President of Finland from 1994 to 2000. He later founded the organization Crisis Management Initiative (CMI), whose goal is to prevent and resolve violent conflicts through informal dialogue and mediation.
Acting Finnish President Sauli Niinistö said: “Martti Ahtisaari believed in humanity, civilization and goodness, and he lived a great, meaningful life.” Ahtisaari has steered Finland into a global “EU era,” said Niinistö. CMI said Ahtisaari will receive a state funeral. The date will be announced at a later date.